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Clinton deals Lady Tigers conference defeat
Four quarters of pressure defense helped propel the Clinton Lady Cardinals to a 52-43 victory over the Nevada Lady Tigers Tuesday night in Wynn Gym.
With the loss Nevada is 1-4 overall and 0-2 in the West Central Conference.
"Early on we let their full-court press rattle us a little bit," Lady Tigers head coach Jenny Allard said during her post-game radio interview with KNEM 1240. "We had some silly turnovers. We need to take a breath and calm down. We know how to break those presses, it was just a simple diamond press they were running."
Both teams got off to ice cold starts as Clinton led 8-2 late in the first quarter. A Brittany Miller 3-pointer from the left-wing pushed Clinton's lead to 11-4 as the first quarter came to a close.
"We are still making too many mistakes on offense," Allard said. "We should be real efficient right now."
Early in the second quarter Nevada's offense began to warm up, with senior forward Megan Payne the catalyst. Payne scored four consecutive baskets off the left block, with most of them coming in transition.
When the dust settled the Lady Tigers trailed 15-12 with 5:01 remaining in the first half.
"When we did slow down and take our time, we got some good shots," Allard said. "We were able to get layups off those possessions."
Clinton reeled off four quick points capped by an Adriane Dehn jumper from the right base-line to put the Cardinals on top 19-12. Payne stopped the Clinton run with another lay-in off the left block, her fifth basket of the quarter to trim the deficit to 19-14.
Senior point guard Madi Culbertson brought Nevada to within four late in the first half with a driving layup. Clinton however, ended the second quarter via layups from center Maddie Huffmaster and forward Katelyn Keyte. Nevada trailed 25-17 at halftime.
"Even though on paper we've got five seniors, sometimes it feels like a team of first-year players," Allard said during the radio interview. "Simply because none of these girls are playing in a role that they are used to playing. And so we're learning."
Second half
Clinton opened the second half on a 5-0 blitz, courtesy of a Huffmaster lay-in and a Dehn trey from the left-wing, putting the Lady Cardinals in front 30-17.
Trailing 32-19 midway through the third quarter, the Lady Tigers went on a 7-0 run to cut the lead to 32-26.
The run started with Payne's sixth field goal of the night, followed by a Culbertson steal in the Clinton backcourt, and lay-in. Megan Hold then hit 1-of-2 free throws followed by a Renee Cox layup off the right-block with 1:38 to play in the third quarter.
That was as close as the Lady Tigers would get the remainder of the game, as Huffmaster scored four quick points capped with a reverse layup to put Clinton up 36-26 at the conclusion of the third quarter.
"It seemed like once we had several possessions in a row that were positive and resulted in points, we would turn around and lose a man on defense or not get back," Allard said.
For Nevada, Payne remained on the bench for a long stretch of the second half, leaving late in the third quarter and not re-entering the game until the 1:29 mark of the fourth quarter. After the game, Allard said this was due to the personnel she wanted on the court, as she was looking for a smaller and quicker lineup.
Culbertson scored nine of her team-high 15 points in the fourth quarter, but it wasn't enough as the Lady Cardinals pulled away, leading by 18 with 3:24 remaining in regulation.
"We have to learn to take it a possession at a time and make something positive happen," Allard said. "We cannot take possessions off."
Allard said she was pleased with Culberston's performance.
"Madi played big tonight," she said. "And I know she is a little bit frustrated because she's in the leadership role, which she's not used to playing. Offensively, she is doing a fantastic job."
For Nevada, Payne finished with 13 points, Cox eight, and Hold seven.
JV and freshman teams
The Lady Tigers junior varsity team defeated Clinton 37-28, while the freshman-team prevailed 19-14.
Up next
The Lady Tigers host Sedalia Smith-Cotton in a WCC matchup, with tip set for 5:30 p.m., Friday night.